CAREER ADVISOR

“Your Career Advisor” is responding to the following inquiry:
“What is the difference between: Secretary, Executive Secretary, Administrative Assistant and Office Manager?”
All reasonable questions related to careers, skill development or employment related issues – sent to advisor@skill-link.com - would be addressed in this section every week.

Q: What is the difference between: Secretary, Executive Secretary, Administrative Assistant and Office Manager?

I am a secretary in a multinational company, I would like to know exactly what is the difference between: Secretary, Executive Secretary, Administrative Assistant and Office Manager. Please answer me because I am so confused.

O. A. (Egypt)

Replying:
Dear Ms. A

There are no scientific definitions as such for these jobs, our experience with hundreds of companies demonstrates that they each vary from one place to the other. The same job may vary depending on which manager is in charge. In all cases these particular four jobs are closely related to the person the job holder reports to; more than any other position in an organization (eg. accountants, sales officers etc..).

In the following paragraphs, we have attempted to present the most common understanding of these positions.

Secretary: historically the word is derived from "secret" or someone who keeps the secretes and confidential affairs of the person they work for. Currently it is not very far from the truth. Secretary is the title of someone who fills a position in which the job holder is responsible for a number of tasks performed for an individual (usually a senior or a middle manager in an organization); in some cases these tasks are performed for an organizational entity (eg. a department in a company or a committee in a government agency). The secretary is entrusted with correspondence, receiving / placing phone calls, filing documents, scheduling appointments and handling other non critical tasks for the person or entity he/she works for (eg. handling petty cash, maintaining statistical reporting on monthly production or sales etc..).

Executive Secretary: is usually a secretary for a senior executive (Managing Director, President, General Manager etc…) who in addition to being responsible for the regular secretarial tasks; he/she are given more decision making / responsibility in assessing the importance of correspondence, following up with various department managers on tasks previously assigned to them by the boss, handling travel arrangements or social events (eg. the annual company dinner, a reception of key customers etc…).

Office Manager: in many cases the term stands for the same responsibilities of an Executive Secretary (eg. the Office Manager of the President of a company). In some cases - specially in large organizations and ministries - the Office Manager of the head of the organization is in charge of certain departments directly attached to the Chairman or the Minister (eg. public relations, planning & follow up etc….). In some small professional firms and companies (or branches) the Office Manager handles - in addition to some secretarial duties - other responsibilities that would have been performed by the Administration Manager in larger entities. Examples of those tasks could be: overseeing support staff and drivers, monitoring premises (maintenance, cleaning and security), procurement of office supplies and office equipment; simple bookkeeping etc…

Administrative Assistant: this is a broader term, while in some cases it could be identical to that of a Secretary or an Office Manager, it could also be designated for someone who helps a manager (in any function) in some minor tasks: eg. the Administrative Assistant to the Sales Director could be entrusted with logging customer visits and follow up results. In a bank's Credit Department, the Administrative Assistant could be responsible for ensuring the credit decisions are properly documented, communicated accurately to the relevant branches and follow up the necessary documentation is properly filed.

From the above you will notice the boundaries are not clear, an Administrative Assistant in one place could be doing what a Secretary would be doing in another company. In one place the receptionist at the entrance (guiding visitors and receiving mail) could be called a secretary. It really depends on the job being performed and the person you / the job holder works with.

Good Luck.

Note from the editor: 
Employer names and inquiry sender names were withheld for confidentiality

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